David Bowie’s 1976 album “Station to Station” featured only six songs. Six long songs but still, just six.

The new deluxe edition expands things a bit, offering a newly remastered CD, a copy of the original 1985 CD master, another disc with alternate versions of five of the songs and a DVD with several different mixes, including ones in DTS and Dolby surround sound. Plus, a 1976 concert on two CDs and double vinyl. And a vinyl copy of “Station to Station.” Oh, and there are also replicas of fan club items from the era, a press kit, backstage pass, photographs and two buttons.

Packaged in a handsome heavyweight box, the whole package weighs around six pounds and retails for $165.98 – all for an album with six songs. And that, music lovers, looks like the future of the box set.

Yes, the traditional multi-CD, career-spanning box set still exists, but after 25 years of them, not to mention the continued overall drop in physical CD sales, record labels are shifting their strategy to focus on fancy collector-focused boxes devoted to a single album. Cynics may call it another trick to persuade fans to buy music they already own, and that’s certainly a valid point. But for hardcore music nerds, it’s a chance to dig deeper and celebrate their passions (or should we say obsessions?).

With the holidays in mind, here’s a look at 2010’s deluxe sets for those looking for a gift with more personality than an iTunes gift card. As always, remember many retailers offer the sets at a discount.

DAVID BOWIE, “STATION TO STATION”

Details: Like many recent single-album reissues, “Station to Station” comes in a more reasonable pared-down version for the casual fan. In this case, it’s a three-CD set with the newly remastered original album and the double-disc live album ($34.98). It is also increasingly common for labels to offer a superdeluxe version of reissues and new titles as limited runs, particularly for legacy acts.

Pros: Like much of Bowie’s ’70s albums, “Station to Station” was so ahead of its time it still sounds contemporary and belongs in the collections of graying boomers and fresh-faced indie rockers. The six-pound version is ridiculous, yes, but will cause certain audiences to drool.

Cons: Bowie’s label has reissued many of his ’70s classics already but, maddeningly, has changed the packaging four times. Consistency matters, folks!

See also: Like many ’80s new-wave bands, Duran Duran borrowed heavily from Bowie’s grace and glamour. During the past few years, EMI has done a smashing job of reissuing and expanding the band’s early catalog, including new versions of “Notorious” and “Big Thing” ($40.98 each) as well as the DD spinoff group Arcadia’s “So Red the Rose” ($26.98), each with a second disc of remixes and b-sides and a DVD with concert footage and/or music videos.

BOB DYLAN, “THE ORIGINAL MONO RECORDINGS”

Details: Mono ruled the rock world until the late ’60s. Because AM radio was broadcast in mono, artists focused on mono versions of albums, with stereo mixes often tossed off later in the process. The Beatles capitalized on this last year by issuing a box of mono versions of their albums through the late ’60s, when stereo had become dominant. Their mono versions occasionally used entirely different takes of songs. Minnesota’s Bob Dylan never went that far, but this new box ($129.98) collects the mono mixes of his first eight albums packaged with a new Greil Marcus essay.

Pros: It has some of Dylan’s strongest work, from his self-titled 1962 debut through 1967’s “John Wesley Harding.”

Cons: Again, the sonic differences between Dylan’s mono and stereo albums are pretty subtle. Casual fans looking for a revelation will likely be disappointed.

See also: For the past two decades, Columbia Records has given Dylan freaks a gift that keeps on giving with “The Bootleg Series.” The ongoing program offers live and unreleased material from Dylan’s vaults, handled with utmost care. The newly issued ninth volume, “The Witmark Demos: 1962-1964” ($18.98), collects a whopping 47 early versions of Dylan classics performed by just the man, his acoustic guitar, harmonica and (occasionally) piano.

MICHAEL JACKSON, “MICHAEL JACKSON’S VISION”

Details: Michael Jackson helped define — and redefine — the art of the music video, and his work in the area is collected in this triple DVD set ($39.98). Thanks to his deep pockets, MJ hired Hollywood directors (Martin Scorsese, John Landis) to create miniature films, many of which remain burned into the memory of anyone who spent the ’80s glued to MTV.

Pros: It’s nice to have all these clips collected in one place and to be reminded of some of Jackson’s later but still-potent videos, like the dazzling Mark Romanek-directed “Scream.”

Cons: It’s also somewhat disturbing to watch Jackson’s famous features morph over the years, transforming him from a wide-eyed, grinning prodigy into an increasingly grim, cautionary tale of plastic surgery gone wrong.

See also: It won’t hit stores until Dec. 14, but the single-CD release “Michael” ($13.98) is the first of many posthumous collections of unreleased MJ tracks. It should be a smash, even though the first track, “Breaking News,” left some wondering if it was Jackson singing on the track or a sound-alike.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, “THE PROMISE: THE DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN STORY”

Details: The Boss spent years working on the follow-up to his 1975 breakthrough, “Born to Run,” writing, recording and ultimately discarding dozens of songs to get to the final 10 that landed in the hands of his fans during summer 1978. This three-CD, three-DVD set ($119.98) features a spiffed-up version of the original, along with 21 outtakes spread across two CDs, including his versions of tracks he gave to other artists like Patti Smith (“Because the Night”) and the Pointer Sisters (“Fire”). The DVDs also include a new 90-minute documentary, a complete 1978 concert, excerpts from other live shows and, oddly, a 2009 video of Springsteen and his band performing the original album live in an empty theater.

Pros: Serious thought and care went into this project, which serves as the perfect bookend to Springsteen’s deluxe “Born to Run” box from 2005.

Cons: Some purists have grumbled about Springsteen’s choice to enhance some of the outtakes with new overdubs and, in the case of “Save My Love,” to offer it as an entirely new recording.

See also: Those on a budget can pick up just the two CDs of outtakes, which have been released separately as “The Promise” ($18.98).

JIMI HENDRIX, “WEST COAST SEATTLE BOY: THE JIMI HENDRIX ANTHOLOGY”

Details: Psychedelic blues-guitar genius Jimi Hendrix died at age 27, but the past four decades have seen a flood of posthumous releases. Unlike the early days, his family now oversees what comes out under Hendrix’s name and this year transferred his catalog to its new home at Sony Music. This four-CD set ($69.98) contains 59 tracks, many previously unreleased, that follow Hendrix’s progression from studio musician to superstar. A DVD included in the set houses a new documentary.

Pros: The documentary is worth watching, and it was a savvy idea to collect Hendrix’s pre-fame studio cuts onto one disc.

Cons: Given the hours of rare Hendrix music already floating around, it’s hard to imagine there’s much top-shelf stuff left, and frankly, this box proves that notion.

See also: While they sound nothing like Jimi Hendrix, pop stars the Bee Gees also have been subject to a glut of reissues over the years, including an updated version of their disco-era compilation “Bee Gees Greatest” in 2007 and last year’s career-spanning “Ultimate Bee Gees.” The new four-CD set “Mythology” ($59.98) expands on “Ultimate,” devoting each disc to a single band member, with the fourth focusing on brother Andy Gibb, who was not in the group.

THE STOOGES, “1970: THE COMPLETE FUN HOUSE SESSIONS”

Details: In 1999, Rhino Handmade issued this limited-edition box of every moment of the eight-hour recording session for the Stooges’ now-classic “Fun House,” from false starts and studio chatter to multiple takes of the seven songs that made the final cut. It’s as close as humanly possible to the experience of sitting in the studio with the guys 40 years ago. The box sold out its 3,000-copy run years ago, each routinely selling for hundreds of dollars on eBay. Last month, Rhino Handmade re-pressed the box to the delight of cash-strapped Stooges nuts, but it’s still pricey at $119.98.

Pros: It’s a rare opportunity to see how the sausage got made. The fact that it’s such a success, even on a small scale, proves there is a market for this specific kind of box.

Cons: It gets kind of boring. Its appeal is more academic, which is ironic, given it’s the Stooges we’re talking about.

See also: To coincide with the reissue, Rhino Handmade just put out a new concert disc from the summer of ’70, “Have Some Fun: Live at Ungano’s” ($19.98), which includes nearly all of “Fun House” performed live along with two previously unreleased Stooges songs. The Stooges’ third album, “Raw Power,” is also back in stores as a two-CD “Legacy Edition” ($15.98) that features the original David Bowie mix and a second disc of live songs and outtakes. The “Deluxe Edition” ($69.99) adds a 48-page book, additional CD of rarities, a reproduced 7-inch single and a DVD documentary about the making of “Raw Power.”

A Minnesota native, Ross Raihala joined the Pioneer Press as pop music critic in 2004, after stints at The Forum in Fargo, N.D., and The Olympian in Olympia, Wash. He covers local and national music as well as some theater and other arts and entertainment topics. His favorite part of his job is reviewing, and live tweeting, Twin Cities arena concerts. And, yes, he saw the same show you did.

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